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ON THE BACKHOE OF YOUTH
She climbed into the cab of a backhoe…you wouldn’t know she was 64.
Because there are times and places and moments…
age doesn’t matter anymore.
She has a friend, she’s had forever, who’s off in Switzerland…on a cruise.
Who seemed to get just as excited…over a pair of vegan shoes.
Still another friend they’ve shared since the time they all were three…
gets that same expression every time she hugs a tree.
As I watched her yesterday…I was immediately stung…
by how our bodies may get older…but it’s our hearts that keep us young…
And I made this revelation …that for all…should be foretold:
If you can stay excited over little things…you never will grow old!
If walking on a starlit night sometimes make you cry.
If you can stop whatever your doing…just to watch a butterfly.
If you still skip stones whenever you come across a river or a lake.
If you stick out your tongue in winter…to catch a cascading snowflake.
If the aroma of chocolate chip cookies makes you want to linger for awhile…
If listening to a chorus of birds…can still cause you to smile…
Perhaps we are like those trees her friend hugs…
our outside ages…yet deceives…
For inside we are constantly renewing…
and everyday we grow new leaves…
New leaves that get excited over backhoes…
over vegan shoes and hugging trees…
New leaves that will keep us forever young
until there’s nothing more to see.
